National Basketball Association

NBA owners, union resume negotiations

Published Sep. 7, 2011 1:00 a.m. ET

foxsports

NBA owners and players met for about 5 1/2 hours Wednesday, plan to resume negotiations Thursday, and could even sit down again Friday.

While neither side would say if progress is being made, the frequency of the discussions seems a good sign. They met only twice in the first two months of the lockout that began July 1.

But they went for about six hours last Wednesday, and decided they would go multiple days this week. Both sides said they could even carry over the discussions into a third consecutive day if things go well during Thursday's session.

"We agreed that we're going to sit here for as many days as we can to see whether we can make progress, but we agreed not to characterize anything at all," Commissioner David Stern said.

Both sides were cautious not to portray any optimism - or any other feelings about what was happening in the room at a midtown hotel. They said last week they wanted details of the discussions to remain private and seem intent on keeping that vow.

"It's tough to characterize it in one fashion or another. Obviously, the more we have the opportunities to meet, talk and discuss and really try to figure out how we can put a deal together, the better, so you can characterize that as positive in a sense," union president Derek Fisher of the Lakers said. "But to characterize what comes out of the meetings and whether we're making progress or we have momentum, we can't say and it's tough to say. Until the deal is done, there is no deal."

Stern was joined on the owners' side by Deputy Commissioner Adam Silver, San Antonio Spurs owner Peter Holt, who heads the labor relations committee, and NBA senior vice president and deputy general counsel Dan Rube. The union negotiators were Fisher, executive vice president Billy Hunter, attorneys Jeffrey Kessler and Ron Klempner, and economist Kevin Murphy.

Hunter, who long held a pessimistic view of the negotiations, said he thought clearly "there's more than enough time" for a deal to be reached that would allow this season's schedule to remain intact. Training camps would likely open Oct. 3, the first preseason games are Oct. 9, and the regular season opener is Nov. 1.

Those long seemed in jeopardy as the sides remained far apart on most financial issues when the old collective bargaining agreement expired at the end of the day June 30. They then didn't meet again until Aug. 1, then not again until last Wednesday.

But both sides recognize that progress must be made soon, or the threat of losing games to a work stoppage for only the second time in league history will increase.

"There's a window here. We have an opportunity to make some progress, to try to hammer some things out," Fisher said.

"Time is running down, not necessarily out, but I think we all feel in the room that if we continue to work at it we can possibly find a way to get a deal done."